Fans follow BC Lions to Surrey park for practices, moved due to turf issues<\/p>\n
Published 8:00 pm Friday, August 28, 2026<\/p>\n
Whether in Whalley or Guildford, diehard BC Lions fans Jenny Brittain and Kathie Currie follow their team on the practice field.<\/p>\n
They are Team Granny #1 and #2, respectively, according to nameplates on orange jerseys worn at Hjorth Road Park on Friday (Aug. 28) during a final practice before the Lions\u2019 trip to Ottawa for a Sunday game.<\/p>\n
The football-loving grannies brought four dozen Tim Hortons muffins for players to eat Friday. Other days, Brittain bakes and brings cookies or loaves, something sweet for Lions to eat.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, they\u2019re all a long ways from home and need a little bit of grandma\u2019s touch, or whatever you want to call it,\u201d said Brittain, co-founder of the Lion Backers fan club 32 years ago with husband Raymond, both seated on lawn chairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey just love to see us. They come off like elephants to get their treats on the table we set up. We come once a week to practice. We go wherever they go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Poor turf quality at the team\u2019s Whalley facility moved practices to the synthetic field in Guildford for the rest of this CFL season, maybe longer.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe turf field at Tom Binnie Park is not up to standard,\u201d explained Neil McEvoy, Lions\u2019 vice-president of football operations. \u201cThe grass there is OK, and we use it a little bit, but the players like the speed on the turf. They like to practice on what they play on, so if we\u2019re playing on grass, then we\u2019ll practice on grass. Today we\u2019re here.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Lions have practiced at Hjorth Road on wet days in the past, but this season it\u2019s been more frequent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat turf field (at Tom Binnie) is being redone, and once it\u2019s done we\u2019ll move our practices back there,\u201d McEvoy added. \u201cWe don\u2019t have a timeline for that but (the turf) has been ordered, from what I understand. After it gets here they\u2019ll need some good weather to install it. We\u2019re hoping that\u2019s done by training camp next year, April or May.\u201d<\/p>\n